How Many Days in a Row Can You Work in Ca

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Whatever employer who has washed business organisation in California is familiar with the state'due south byzantine wage-hours laws and the immense liability for even pocket-sized violations.  The complexity of these laws – and the potential exposure facing employers – has not been lost on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals equally the recent instance of Mendoza 5. Nordstrom demonstrates.  There, the Ninth Circuit asked the California Supreme Court for guidance on three questions related to California'south rarely litigated "day of residue" police force.

California police provides that employees are entitled to one mean solar day's rest in seven and that no employer shall "crusade" an employee to work more than than six days in vii.  Employees who do not work more than 30 hours per week, or who do not piece of work more than six hours in "any" day of the week, are exempt from these requirements.

In Mendoza, ii sometime Nordstrom employees brought a class action confronting Nordstrom for alleged violations of the twenty-four hours of rest requirements.  1 employee had worked seven consecutive days three times during his employment; the other employee had once worked seven sequent days.  With simply these four potential violations, the employees sought to stand for a class of all Nordstrom employees in California for four years.  The district court held that Nordstrom did not violate the mean solar day of residuum requirements because several shifts were less than six hours and because the only reason they worked on other shifts was considering they had agreed to option up additional shifts at a co-worker's or supervisor's asking.  The employees appealed to the Ninth Circuit.

The Ninth Circuit adamant that the Labor Code provisions at event were cryptic, and the differing interpretations would pb to either no liability for Nordstrom or to exponential liability.  As the Court put it, "the obligations of thousands of California employers, and the rights of tens of thousands of California workers, are at stake."  Then rather than decide the case on the merits, the 9th Circuit certified iii questions to the California Supreme Court:

1. California Labor Code section 551 provides that "[e]very person employed in whatsoever occupation of labor is entitled to one day'due south balance therefrom in vii."  Is the day of residual calculated by the workweek or on a rolling footing for any sequent 7-day menses?  (Employees may work seven days in a row beyond two different work weeks.)
2. California Labor Code section 556 exempts employers from providing such a day of residuum "when the total hours of employment do not exceed 30 hours in any week or half dozen hours in any one day thereof."  Does that exemption apply when an employee works less than six hours in whatever i day of the applicable week, or does it apply only when an employee works less than six hours in each day of the calendar week?  (In other words, tin can an employee work 7 days if he works 8-eight-eight- five -eight-8-eight, or does the employee have to work under six hours each twenty-four hour period in those 7 days for in that location not to be a violation?)
3. California Labor Code department 552 provides that an employer may non "cause his employees to work more than than six days in seven."  What does information technology mean for an employer to "cause" an employee to work more than than six days in seven: force, coerce, force per unit area, schedule, encourage, reward, permit, or something else?  (So does an employer violate the law if information technology allows an employee to bandy shifts or option up an additional shift?)

The Supreme Court can reject to accept the certification request.  But this seems unlikely given the tremendous potential affect on California's employers – especially in the retail and hospitality industries where 7-mean solar day schedules and shift-swaps are not uncommon.  As the Ninth Circuit realized, "The consequences of any interpretation of the day-of-residual statutes volition take profound legal, economical, and practical consequences for employers and employees throughout the country of California and will govern the effect of many disputes in both state and federal courts in the 9th Circuit."

We will keep you apprised of any developments.  In the concurrently, contact your Vorys lawyer if you have questions nearly navigating the California wage-60 minutes maze.

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Source: https://www.vorys.com/publications-1451.html

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